In the Speech of the Subalterns, Echoes the Voice of the Divine

Listening to Luke 16: 19 -31
Lazarus Speaks

This parable consists of three characters, rich man, Lazarus and Abraham and not to deny a narrator of this story. Most of the talking in this parable is done by the rich man and Abraham, with some interventions of the narrator. It is interesting and surprising to note that in the whole of the parable not a single word of Lazarus is recorded, for Lazarus’ voice has been conspicuously silenced. It was the rich man who silenced Lazarus’ voice before death, and later it was Abraham who shadowed Lazarus and silenced his voice. Lazarus has been forced into speechlessness by the conditions around him in this entire narration. His poverty, his hunger, his homelessness, his powerlessness, his not being ‘famous’ in the society, his wounded self and psyche all paved to his (non)being as non-person, non-identity and non-public pushing him into the mode of speechlessness.

In such a context, the text challenges to employ a ‘decolonized hermeneutics’ to recover the voice and speech of Lazarus, thereby uphold the worth and value of his life, both before and after death. Can the subaltern speak? Yes, the subaltern can speak, for those that have ears will listen to their narratives.

“When we were dying out of hunger and poverty, here is a rich man who was insensitive to the needs of the people around him and lived a complacent selfish life in pomp and pleasure” remembered Lazarus who was at his deathbed due to a terminal ailment, for he lived as a homeless person at the gates of this rich man’s villa fed on the crumbs of this man along with dogs, for the dogs even licked his wounds.

Few days later Lazarus died, and since he was an outcast, no one came forward to bury his polluted corpse, leaving it to decompose without a burial. But fortunately, the angels carried Lazarus to be with God, where Abraham also found a refuge. Afterwards the rich man also died, for tens and thousands of rich people came to his ceremonial funeral service paying tributes to him, praising him for what he was not.

Eventually rich man was taken to Hades, where he was tormented, a price for his being rich and for creating poor around him. He looked up, saw Abraham at God’s place and was startled to see Lazarus by his side. “Can a dog licking wounded, homeless, poor ‘slum dog’ be at the side of Abraham, the father of the faithful?” exclaimed the once upon a time rich man. (For in the kingdom of God, rich man’s position is reversed.)

If Lazarus spoke in this text, all the evil things the rich man did towards the poor and homeless people would have been revealed, all the evil things that the rich man did to become even more richer by making the poor poorer would have been exposed. If Lazarus spoke, he would have narrated how he was pushed by the rich empire into poverty, homelessness and hunger. If Lazarus spoke, he would have testified what an impossibility it would have been for the rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. If Lazarus spoke, he would have disclosed that the real meaning of life is in sharing and caring for one another, for life cannot be quantified into monetary terms and conditions.

If Lazarus spoke, he would have said emphasized on the spirituality of dispossession, where each individual is called to give up greed and bridge the gap between rich and poor by identifying with the poor. If Lazarus spoke, he would have said, look for the divine among the poor, for theirs is the kingdom of God. If Lazarus spoke, he would have called to practice what has been preached by Moses and the prophets. If Lazarus spoke, he would have emphasized that being grounded in one’s faith traditions like Moses or Prophet(s) makes the them to be inclusive, faithful and tolerant in looking for truths in other faith traditions. If Lazarus spoke, he would have called for repentance of the rich from poor, seeking reparations from rich to poor. so that the world would become a better place to live.  If Lazarus spoke, he would have affirmed in the continuation of God’s revelation in the activity of the life and death of Jesus Christ, who was sent back to life by God in resurrection. If Lazarus spoke, he would have said that he died while he was still living, and is still living while he was dead.  When Lazarus speaks, the divine is located in his voice, for in the speech of the subalterns, echoes the voice of the divine. Those that have ears, let them listen.

Rajbharat Patta,

24^th September 2016

(Sermon to be preached at St. Ninians URC Church, Manchester)